Category Archives: Literature

French has many “why don’t we have a word for that?” words and even more that are just plain beautiful. Here’s a short list of my 9 favorite French words.

dépayser (verb) To leave your comfort zone

This seems like an appropriate place to begin because this word describes something that is fundamental to learning any foreign language: exiting your zone of comfort. The verb dépayser contains the word pays, which means “country”, and the prefix de-, which, like in English, can suggest removal or negation. So a literal one-word translation might be something like “decountrify.” To be dépaysé (adj) – “decountrified” – is to be out of your element, to break or change your habits, to be disoriented. The noun dépaysement – “decountrification” – can be translated as “culture shock” or “disorientation” or “change of scene.” Dépayser can also be used reflexively – se dépayser – so you can even “decountrify” yourself or break your habits. So, while you don’t literally have to leave your country to leave your comfort zone, this word suggests a fundamental relationship between your habits and your culture. It may be the very antidote to this next word…

Nombrilisme

noun: self-centeredness, egoism, self-absorption

Nombril is navel or belly button, so this word is literally “bellybuttonism” and roughly translates as self-centeredness, egoism, self-absorption, etc. It is petty and detail-oriented, concentrating on a single issue to the exclusion of all else, a certain kind of childishness. English also has “navel-gazing” by the way, but nombrilisme seems to capture so much more by elevating it to the status of a doctrine – its an -ism after all! And it doesn’t stop at the individual bellybutton; it can refer to a collective, national navel-gazing, a tendency to relate everything back to one’s own country, e.g. nombrilisme américain, nombrilismefrançais, etc. If you want to learn a foreign language you’re going to have to stop gazing at your navel – get out there and decountrify yourself!

Vachement

adverb: very, truly

When we examine those symbols that lie at the very heart of French culture and identity, there is one that we cannot ignore: the cow – la vache – an animal so important to this country of cheese and cream that it has transcended description and association to become an adverb, which can be applied to just about any verb or adjective for emphasis. The word is vachement, which literally translates to “cowly” and just means very, extremely, truly – a more colorful and emphatic très. Listen for it and you will hear it constantly – but no one seems to realize they are saying “cowly”! Vachement is part of the fabric of everyday expression, its connection to la vache seemingly obscured, a testament to the supreme ubiquity achieved by the cow in France. It is all things and no things.

Chauve-souris

noun: bat

Chauve means bald and souris means mouse, so a chauve-souris – a bat – is literally a “bald mouse.” And while I can somewhat understand the association, it seems like its lack of hair is one of the more mundane traits that distinguish the bat from the mouse. What about FLIGHT, for example?! Shouldn’t it be a souris volante (“flying mouse”)? Maybe the person who gave the bat its French name encountered it for the first time while it was sleeping. But even then, you’d think “upside-down mouse” would come to mind before “bald mouse.” This is, at any rate, a very strange mouse – vachement bizarre.

Avoir le cafard

idiom: to be depressed

Are you feeling blue? Down in the dumps? Well my friend, it sounds like you’ve got the cockroach. Avoir le cafard literally means “to have the cockroach.” And really, who wouldn’t be feeling a little down if they were stuck with one of those things.

Chou

noun: cabbage; adj: cute

The noun chou means cabbage, as well as a host of other vegetables when combined with certain other words: chou de Bruxelles is Brussels sprout, chou chinois is bok choy, chou-fleur is cauliflower, chou-rave is kohlrabi and the list goes on. But cabbage in the French language transcends the mere culinary: it can be a term of endearment for a child (mon petit chou = “my little cabbage”), a baby (bout de chou = “piece of cabbage”) or for a significant other (je t’aime, mon chou ! = “I love you, my cabbage!”); as an adjective it can mean adorable, lovely, cute sweet etc. Tu m’as apporté des fleurs ?! Comme tu es chou ! – “You brought me flowers?! How cabbage of you!” Regarde ce bébé-là, comme il est (vachement) chou – “look at that baby, isn’t he just (cowly) cabbage!”

Ronronner

verb: to purr

The verb ronronner is not only excellent practice for your French r-gargling, but by pronouncing it correctly you will already be doing the thing it describes: purring (like a cat) or humming (like an engine).

Coccinelle

noun: ladybug/ladybird

This word is just plain fun to say. It springs forth from the soft palate and bounces back before slithering out through the teeth, only to liquefy back across the entire palate. It takes your mouth on a one-word journey across five consonants and three vowels that are alternatingly sharp, bright, bouncy, and fluid. And to what creature is bestowed the honor of this ecstatic word? Why it’s none other than the humble ladybug to the Americans, ladybird to the British. And whether you know it as ladybug or ladybird, I think we can all agree that this is a pretty unimaginative way to refer to a polka-dotted flying thing. Francophones: 1, Anglophones: 0

Dépanneur

And finally, a shoutout to my friends in Québec – I haven’t forgotten you! A list of all the amazing words and expressions to be found in Québécois French will have to wait for the next article. In the meantime, I leave you with dépanneur, by far not the most interesting or entertaining French-Canadian word, but a favorite for personal reasons. In standard French, a panne is a breakdown or failure of a machine. The verb dépanner means to fix, repair, mend, but takes on the broader meaning of to help out or to come to the rescue. A dépanneur (in standard French) is by extension a repair person or a mechanic. The Québécois take this idea to its logical conclusion: a dépanneur is the corner store where you buy your booze and chips. A frequent panne that I encounter is lack of beer and chips. In Montréal, the dépanneur was always there to help.

Blog Stats

Recent Posts from Penney Vanderbilt: PenneyVanderbilt

Originally posted on PenneyVanderbilt: pgatour.com Ken Venturi interview with Ben Hogan 1983 Multiple courses lay claim to the title of “Hogan’s Alley,” but few can rival the role that Colonial Country Club played in the legend’s career. Not only did Hogan win five times at Colonial, which will host this week’s Fort Worth Invitational, but…

pgatour.com Ken Venturi interview with Ben Hogan 1983 Multiple courses lay claim to the title of “Hogan’s Alley,” but few can rival the role that Colonial Country Club played in the legend’s career. Not only did Hogan win five times at Colonial, which will host this week’s Fort Worth Invitational, but the course’s founder, Marvin […]

Originally posted on Penney Vanderbilt and KC Jones: All About Railroads: AM New York The MTA board will vote on a proposed pilot program Wednesday that would dramatically reduce LIRR ticket prices for 10 stations in Brooklyn and Queens, including Atlantic Terminal. Photo Credit: The MTA board will vote on a proposed pilot program Wednesday…

Originally posted on Penney Vanderbilt and KC Jones: All About Railroads: patch.com ? The MTA plans to run 16 additional trains around the weekday rush hours starting in November. NEW YORK, NY — The MTA plans to run 16 extra trains on four subway lines starting this fall to reduce wait times and crowding. The…

Originally posted on thekitchensgarden: After being rained on the day we were to bale and then all the next night, yesterday evening we finally got the hay baled and under cover. About one hundred bales are pretty good – a little wetter than they should be …… but I have stored them in the loft…

Originally posted on Perspectives on Life, the Universe and Everything: when the pen of a poor poet or a singer singing on the road create flowers with the most amazing smell the most beautiful colour fruits and berries melting in the mouth soothing all senses past, present, all tenses in a random unthought verse unseen…

Originally posted on Penney Vanderbilt and KC Jones: All About Railroads: In a word: history by JOSH FRUHLINGER Village Voice The New York City Subway is the lifeblood of the city, yet it seems perpetually embroiled in crisis; though it’s currently caught in a terrible backlog of deferred maintenance, the city can’t function without it, as…